Tribecan Richard Parsons, who served at the helm of some of the country’s biggest media and finance firms in a career that spanned five decades, died on Dec. 26. He was 76 and the cause was cancer.

The Times obit described him as “a serial troubleshooter at distressed companies including Time Warner, CBS and Citigroup and a sought-after adviser at the highest echelons of American industry.”

“Mr. Parsons, a jazz-loving oenophile [wine lover] who served on the board of the Apollo Theater and owned a Tuscan winery, rose to the top of the business world in an era when he was frequently the only Black executive in the boardroom,” The Times wrote. “A self-described ‘Rockefeller Republican,’ he spoke out on social justice issues in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020, signed a letter protesting a 2021 law that imposed restrictions on Georgia voters, and was a founder of the Equity Alliance, a fund that backs early-stage ventures led by women and people of color.”

He and his wife, Laura, moved to 166 Duane in 1998, and soon became active in the building and the neighborhood; Richard served as president of the coop board until his death. Any of us who have served on coop boards understand that fixing Time Warner might have been a more pleasant task.

“He reassuringly steered the ship through storms and fair weather,” said an old friend who asked not to be named. “He was a good listener and a master of calming things down while keeping friendships intact.”

Richard Dean Parsons was born April 4, 1948, in Brooklyn, grew up in Bed-Stuy and attended public high school in Queens. (In 2019, he and his close friend Ronald Lauder, who went to Bronx Science, funded an effort to stop the de Blasio administration from eliminating the specialized high school entrance exam. “Greater diversity in our schools is an imperative, but the battle cannot be won simply by lowering standards,” Parsons told the Times. “I’m backing this effort because I believe we must do the hard work of improving our public education system so that all children have the opportunity to realize their full academic potential.”)

Parsons was accepted to Albany Law School despite being several credits short on his undergrad degree; he received his JD in 1971 at the top of his class. He worked as a lawyer on the staff of Governor Nelson Rockefeller, followed him to DC when he became vice president under Ford, eventually returning to New York and becoming a partner at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler. It was from there that he was tapped to be the COO of Dime Savings Bank, steering it through a merger and starting his career as a corporate fixer.

He served as the chairman of Citigroup and the chairman and CEO of Time Warner, the interim CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers, and in 2018, the interim chairman of the board for CBS, resigning later that year for health reasons.

Neighbors on Duane Park knew him as a fellow dog owner, chatting folks up on the sidewalks as dog owners do. And members of the Friends of Duane Park knew him as a devoted supporter who opened his apartment to Loft Tour-goers in the early years.

“A clear-eyed and successful businessman without a doubt but what I will remember most about Dick is his warm smile – the kind that puts you immediately at ease – and the advice he gave willingly and generously over the years,” said Karie Parker Davidson, who knew Parsons professionally during his Dime Savings Bank days in 1995 and who also worked with him over many years through the Friends of Duane Park. “As a friend of Duane Park, Richard and Laura opened their home on an early loft tour – his site captain remembers him personally touring her through the loft, taking time to point out the art and other items of interest. He was such a lovely man.”

“The losses this year are compounding,” Karie added. “David Bouley, Paul Sipos, and now Dick Parsons.”

He is survived by his wife and three children, one of whom also lived at 166 Duane with his own wife and children for a decade or more.

“He adored his grandchildren, who were indeed adorable,” said the friend, who added that Parsons also loved Gigino. “He loved having them an elevator’s ride away.”

In fact the Times chose to end its obit with this clip from a 2008 PBS interview, when he was asked by reporter Soledad O’Brien, “If you’re given three lines for people to say, ‘This is who he was,’ what’s in those three lines?”

Parsons thought for a moment, then responded: “Good husband, good father, good grandfather. My grandmother used to say the essence of a good man was humility and grace. I’ll go with that.”